Jon M. Chu teases mystery star that voices the Cowardly Lion in ‘Wicked: For Good’
Cynthia Erivo, Jon M. Chu and Ariana Grande attend the New York special screening of ‘Wicked’ at the Museum of Modern Art in New York City on November 14, 2024. (Kevin Mazur/ Getty Images for Universal Pictures)
Jon M. Chu has revealed that a celebrated actor will voice the Cowardly Lion in Wicked: For Good.
The director described how he selected the mystery actor to voice the iconic character in an interview with Deadline shared on Thursday. Chu says he sent the star a direct message on Instagram asking him to be part of the Wicked sequel.
“I was like, ‘It’s not a ton of lines, but maybe you have a little time. I know you’re busy. I’ll come to you.’ He was like, ‘Why the f*** not, let’s go!’ And then we went ahead and recorded the lines.”
Chu is excited for the rest of the world to find out who is voicing the character.
“Man, wait until the red carpet when the actor who gave us the Cowardly Lion’s voice steps foot on it. It’ll be wild,” Chu said.
The Cowardly Lion was a main character in the classic 1939 film The Wizard of Oz. He was portrayed by BertLahr. The character was teased in the most recent trailer for Wicked: For Good, which was released on Sept. 24.
Sophie Kinsella attends the photocall of the movie ‘Can You Keep a Secret?’ on Oct. 19, 2019, in Rome, Italy. (Stefania D’alessandro/Getty Images)
Sophie Kinsella, author of the bestselling Shopaholic book series, has died at the age of 55.
Kinsella’s family shared news of her death in an Instagram post Wednesday.
“We are heartbroken to announce the passing this morning of our beloved Sophie (aka Maddy, aka Mummy). She died peacefully, with her final days filled with her true loves: family and music and warmth and Christmas and joy,” the family’s statement said, in part. “We can’t imagine what life will be like without her radiance and love of life.”
Kinsella revealed publicly in April 2024 that she had been diagnosed two years earlier with glioblastoma, an aggressive brain tumor.
“Despite her illness, which she bore with unimaginable courage, Sophie counted herself truly blessed – to have such wonderful family and friends, and to have had the extraordinary success of her writing career,” her family’s statement continued.
Madeleine Sophie Wickham — Kinsella was a pen name — was born on Dec. 12, 1969. She was a former financial journalist who became a popular author and sold millions of books worldwide over two decades. The first two books of her Shopaholic series — The Secret Dreamworld of a Shopaholic and Shopaholic Abroad, published in 2000 and 2001, respectively — were adapted into the 2009 movie Confessions of a Shopaholic, starring Isla Fisher and Hugh Dancy. The film was produced by Touchstone Pictures and Jerry Bruckheimer Films and distributed by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures.
Overall, Kinsella wrote 36 books, including children’s books, the young adult title Finding Audrey and short stories. Her initial books were published as Madeleine Wickham.
Kinsella’s most recent book, What Does It Feel Like?, was published in October 2024. The novella follows the story of a novelist named Eve who wakes up in a hospital bed one day and learns she has a brain tumor. In the book’s introduction, Kinsella called it her “most autobiographical work to date.”
Kinsella opened up to Good Morning America co-anchor Robin Roberts in July 2024 about the book and living with brain cancer.
“I just thought people might be curious to know what it feels like to go through this,” Kinsella said. “It’s funny in parts, it’s sad in parts but I hope it’s full of optimism and love most of all.”
Kinsella said she first noticed something might be amiss with her health after the onset of multiple symptoms.
“The first symptoms that I had was, in fact, was my legs,” Kinsella told Roberts. “I was stumbling. I was tripping. I started getting very severe headaches. I got very confused. But it was really when I started tipping over in my chair that we realized something really was wrong.”
Kinsella said she underwent surgery after receiving the diagnosis that she had a grade 4 glioblastoma. She described the operation as a “triumph” at the time but said the treatment affected her memory and movement afterward. Kinsella also underwent multiple rounds of radiation and chemotherapy following surgery.
Kinsella lived in London with her husband, Henry Wickham, whom she called her “hero,” who stayed by her side throughout her difficult health journey. The couple had five children.
In her July 2024 interview, Kinsella was asked about what she’d want her happy ending to be.
“My happy ending is that whatever happens to me, my family is OK,” the author said at the time. “I think that’s my happy ending. Because that’s what I care about.”
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Millie Bobby Brown attends the Netflix’s ‘The Electric State’ fan screening at The Paris Theatre on March 11, 2025, in New York City. (Jamie McCarthy/Getty Images)
Millie Bobby Brown has made some rare comments regarding her decision to get married at age 20.
The actress spoke about her marriage to Jake Bongiovi in a new interview with British Vogue.
Brown, who wed Bongiovi in May 2024 before the pair celebrated with their families at a larger ceremony that October, told the outlet she understood she was getting married at a young age. She was 20 at the time, while Bongiovi was 22.
“I understood I was young — I know that,” Brown said.
The actress said at the time of their first wedding the couple had been together for almost three years.
“I truly just can’t say it enough: when you meet that person, you know it,” Brown said.
Bongiovi is the second-youngest son of Jon Bon Jovi. The couple became parents this summer when they adopted their daughter. They shared the news to social media in August.
“We are beyond excited to embark on this beautiful next chapter of parenthood in both peace and privacy,” the couple wrote at the time.
Brown also spoke about what it has been like to become a parent, calling it “a beautiful, amazing journey” and saying their daughter has “taught us so much already.”
“Our days are filled with lots of cuddles and laughter and love. It’s just endless joy,” Brown said.
She also revealed she has no plans to share her daughter’s name, hoping to keep her life private.
“For me, it’s really important to protect her and her story until she’s old enough to potentially one day share it herself,” Brown said. “It’s not my place to purposefully put her in the spotlight unwillingly. If she chooses to share her personality one day with the world, like I did when I was young, that’s something we’d support.”
Colin Jost and Michael Che on ‘Saturday Night Live.’ (Will Heath/NBC)
It seems the Saturday Night Live cast shake-ups are over.
The upcoming 51st season of the late-night comedy sketch series has finished announcing its new arrivals and departures, Variety reports.
Bowen Yang, Ego Nwodim, Chloe Fineman and Kenan Thompson are all set to return for the new season of the show, with Thompson back for a record-breaking 23rd season on the program.
Additionally, Weekend Update hosts Colin Jost and Michael Che are returning for season 51. They will host the beloved sketch for their 12th season together.
Also returning for season 51 are Mikey Day, Sarah Sherman, Marcello Hernández, Andrew Dismukes and James Austin Johnson. Ashley Padilla and Jane Wickline, who joined the cast during season 50, are also coming back to the show for another season.
As previously reported, new faces joining the cast are Tommy Brennan, Jeremy Culhane, Kam Patterson and Veronika Slowikowska. Please Don’t Destroy member Ben Marshall has also joined the show’s cast. The sketch comedy trio will be split up with Martin Herlihy on the SNL writing staff and John Higgins departing the show.
Additionally, Heidi Gardner, Devon Walker, Michael Longfellow and Emil Wakim have all departed the cast ahead of the new season.
